Ron Sadoff Tells the Score

JF: What should I keep in mind when I compose the score to an animated film?

RS: Unlike live-action films, the music must serve double duty: it is generally wall-to-wall and it must often “Mickey-Mouse” (a term that means that the music mimics a physical motion that is going on in the film) or at least emphasize an extraordinary amount of points of action or emotional punch. In animation, if the music does not “touch” physical movements, we tend to also not be aware of them. Music really shapes animation, which means a composer will be working extensively in setting the emotional and kinetic tone while at the same time juggling the timings to fit the many actions.

JF: What can I learn from Oliver Wallace’s scores?

RS: He was a consummate master at establishing just the right tone for any given sequence. His ideas and his musical gestures were immediately attractive and dynamic. Wallace was a case study in how a composer establishes character in the least amount of notes and time possible. Take the “Elephants on Parade” sequence in Dumbo, for instance. Those opening horns grab you and before you know it, he begins this devilishly delicious theme that sustains interest through a marvelous variety of orchestrations and variations – magic!

JF: Which do you feel is the best Disney score? Why?

RS: I can’t pin it down to one, because when any of the great Disney composers evoke that Disney sounds and have their imaginations percolating, it produces a rich score filled with a myriad of colors and gripping moments. Anyway, Wallace’s score for Dumbo is certainly up there, as is Leigh Harline’s score for Pinocchio (not to mention the song “When You Wish Upon a Star”). In modern times, Alan Menkin’s songs and score for Beauty and the Beast are exceptional. There are many other wonderful scores like Buddy Baker’s for The Fox and the Hound.” Frank Churchill and Edward Plumb’s score for Bambi is comparable. Perhaps the real point is that each of these great composers had their own distinctive voice, producing scores that were clearly Disneyesque but highly personalized, too.

Ron Sadoff